The 2006 Pinot Noir Seven Springs Vineyard is dark ruby-colored with a nose offering violets, black cherry, and black raspberry. Dense (perhaps due to the whole clusters used in this cuvee but none of the others), with notes of black cherry preserves and cassis, this layered effort is intense and lengthy. Give it 2-3 years and drink it from 2011 to 2020. Penner-Ash’s 2006 Pinot Noirs are uniformly top-notch, not a surprise given this husband-wife team’s track record. Not to be over-looked, Penner-Ash also produces excellent Riesling, Viognier, and Syrah. www.pennerash.com

The one disappointment in the Pinot portfolio is the 2005 Pinot Noir “Seven Springs Vineyard”. The aromatics are muted, the flavors lean toward tartness, and the finish is compressed and hard. Lynn Penner-Ash had a long, successful career at Rex Hill before starting her namesake winery with her husband Ron in 1998. They are now ensconced in a new gravity-flow winery of their own design. She describes the 2005 vintage as “challenging” both because of the weather and because it was their first vintage in the new winery. Tel. (503) 554-5545; www.pennerash.com. Also tasted: 2006 Viognier (90), 2006 Riesling (90), 2005 Syrah (90)